CyanogenMod has launched the second installment of the Release Candidate CM 10.1.0 ROM and, now, you can learn how to successfully install it on your Sprint Galaxy Nexus using the instructions that I’ve listed below.

Read the entire tutorial and you should be able to flash the latest build of one of the most popular Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean operating systems. Before installing this new OS, you will first have to read the guidelines listed below, as you will learn how to properly configure your smartphone and how can you backup some of your most important data files. Here’s what you need to know:

use this guide only with the Sprint model of the Samsung Galaxy Nexus phone. Don’t try to use the files you find here on any other Android device.

your phone has to be factory unlocked, rooted and running a copy of CWM or TWRP Recovery. I’ve used the CWM Recovery mode for this phone but you can use TWRP, that’s the recovery that you have installed on your phone.

use the Recovery mode and create a full NANDROID backup of your current ROM. This will make a restore file that you can use in case the device doesn’t want to boot with the CM 10.1 RC2 ROM.

make sure that you don’t skip any steps that I have listed in this tutorial.

the how-to part of this guide will ask you to wipe data and factory reset the device, this means that you will lose the contents stored on the system partition. The internal sdcard contents will be left unchanged as you will lose the installed apps and other similar data that’s stored on the system part of your phone’s sdcard.

make sure that there is enough battery power left before the phone powers off, as you wouldn’t want it to switch off in the middle of the updating process.

note that we cannot be blamed in case you lose any data or you brick the smartphone.

if you cannot complete the installation, then you should ask for extra instructions by leaving a detailed comment in our comments section.

NOTE: if your Sprint Galaxy Nexus device is already running a previous CM 10.1 build like the Nightlies or M Snapshots, then you can skip the ‘factory reset’ step and simply install the new build over the previous one. This is known as a ‘dirty flash’. However, in case the new ROM doesn’t boot with your phone, you will need to return to the Recovery mode and use the Factory Reset option.

These were all the guidelines that you had to go over before continuing to the next part of this article and learn how to update your device with an Android 4.2.2 custom ROM.

From the main recovery menu select ‘backup and restore’ option. Create a NANDROID backup of your current ROM so that you’ll be covered in case something goes wrong and the new ROM doesn’t want to boot with your phone.

Select ‘wipe data/ factory reset’ now and confirm. NOTE: If your phone is already running on a previous build of CM 10.1, then you can skip this step and perform a ‘dirty flash’.

Next, select ‘install zip from sdcard’ now and then ‘choose zip from sdcard’. Find the CM 10.1.0 RC2 zip and install it.

When the ROM has been installed, you need to select ‘choose zip from sdcard’ again, then find the Gapps file and confirm its installation.

After both files have been correctly installed, return to the first menu of the CWM Recovery mode.

Select ‘reboot system now’.

Wait for the smartphone to boot into normal mode. The first boot process shouldn’t take more than 5-7 minutes.

Enter your Google account details and take control over your phone.

Test the new OS and that should be all, you’ve successfully flashed a new CM 10.1.0 build ROM on your Sprint Galaxy Nexus.

In case the phone doesn’t boot after 10 minutes or it gets into a boot loop, then you should power it off completely. After that, boot again into CWM Recovery mode and repeat the entire tutorial. Make sure that this time you apply the actions listed under step 9 and factory reset the phone. Custom ROMs might act up from time to time and you have to repeat the installations until these get installed.

From now on you can continue to update your CM 10.1.0 ROM by going through Settings and then CyanogenMod Updates menu. Find the latest builds and simply tap once to download and install all the required files.

If you don’t like how this new CM 10.1 ROM runs on your Sprint Galaxy Nexus, then you can restore the phone to its NANDROID backup, it is the file created before installing the new ROM.

For any other questions, use the comments field below and we will try to offer you the best possible solutions to any problems that you might’ve stumbled while updating your device.